


Paris

by kinkyacewonho



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, F/M, Genderbending, Trans Character, Trans Female Character, Wonhee, fem!wonho, trans wonhee
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-29
Updated: 2019-01-29
Packaged: 2019-10-18 21:43:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17588978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kinkyacewonho/pseuds/kinkyacewonho
Summary: When Hyungwon announced he was moving to Paris for the rest of the school year, Wonhee was certain it meant the end of whatever it was they had been building between them.





	Paris

**Author's Note:**

> For the “social media” square of Monsta X Bingo.

Wonhee’s almost asleep when her cell phone vibrates underneath her pillow, waking her. She feels around for it blindly, squinting her eyes to read the bright screen in the darkness. _h.one just posted a photo_ , the notification from Instagram reads. 

She swipes across the screen with her thumb, and the picture loads: a selfie of Hyungwon in front of the Eiffel tower. He’s looking away from the camera, showing off his side profile, and the world-famous landmark in the background looks like scenery he just happened to stop in front of rather than the focus of the photo. His caption: _wish you were here_ 🌻  

Wonhee checks the time at the top of her screen: 12:37 AM, which means it’s 4:37 PM in Paris. Before she can think it over too much and talk herself out of it, she hits the video call button. 

Almost immediately, the anxiety sets in. He just posted that photo, he’s probably still out in the city, and she shouldn’t bother him if he’s out sightseeing. Just as she moves to cancel the call, Hyungwon’s face appears on the screen, sleepy-eyed and smiling. 

“Wonhee.” His voice comes out tinny through her phone speakers, but it’s still warm and comforting, like hot chocolate. 

She waves shyly, desperately praying her face isn’t too puffy from sleep. Why the hell did she think it was a good idea to call him without looking in a mirror first. “Hey. I’m not bothering you, am I?” 

He shakes his head. “I’m just walking back to the dorm. You had perfect timing, actually. I could use the company.” 

“I saw your Instagram post,” she admits. For a moment, she could swear a blush comes over Hyungwon’s cheeks, but it must be a trick of the light, or the pixels on her phone screen, because it disappears almost immediately. 

“You saw the caption?” he asks, and she nods. He smiles again, and it stretches across his whole face. ”I think you’d like it here,” he says, averting his eyes from the camera, like he’s too shy to make eye contact with Wonhee. “It’s like something out of a romance novel.” 

“Or _Beauty and the Beast_?” Wonhee suggests. 

Hyungwon chuckles. “Yeah, or _Beauty and the Beast_.” It’s her favorite Disney movie, and she’s glad Hyungwon entertains her, that he isn’t one of those people who insists it’s about Stockholm Syndrome or bestiality. For Wonhee, it’s always been a tale of true love, about what’s on the inside mattering more than the outside, something she was drawn to even before she realized her outsides didn’t match her insides. 

“How are your classes?” she asks, and Hyungwon smiles. 

“Good. I’m almost done. I’ve got four more weeks, I think?” 

“And you’re coming back to Korea after that, right?” 

Hyungwon nods. He says something, but the video quality drops, the crystal-clear image of him turning pixelated, and Wonhee misses it.  

“Hyungwon?” she calls, afraid she’s lost him. 

“Sorry, I’m almost back at the dorm. I’ve got really shitty service there.” His voice comes out even more crackly over the speakers. “I’ll talk to you later?” 

Wonhee waves again, and she smiles but it doesn’t reach her eyes. “Later. Have a good night, Hyungwon.” 

“You too, Wonhee.” 

The call ends, and her screen goes back to the picture of Hyungwon in front of the Eiffel Tower. 

_26 minutes ago_ , the text at the bottom reads. The call certainly didn’t feel like 26 minutes. But that also means it’s past 1 AM, and Wonhee needs to sleep. 

 

When Hyungwon announced he was moving to Paris for the rest of the school year, Wonhee was certain it meant the end of whatever it was they had been building between them. They had been on a few dates, but they weren’t _dating_ ; they hadn’t even kissed yet. And in Paris, Hyungwon would certainly find a girl better suited to his jet-setting lifestyle: a model like him, or someone pretty enough to be one, with money to spare on designer clothes, expensive dinners, and trips across the globe. Wonhee has to save up to afford a trip across the country, and ramen that isn’t from an instant packet is a treat meal for her.  Why would Hyungwon want to waste his time on her when he’s halfway across the globe, surrounded by beautiful people? 

Their friends held a going away party the night before he left, and Wonhee thought of confessing then, telling him she liked the time they spent together, she liked him, and she wanted to be something official. But she chickened out, too terrified of losing him forever if he said no. 

At the end of the night, he hugged her and told her he’d miss her. And then he was gone. 

She didn’t expect him to contact her the day of his flight. Although she’s never flown, she knows airplane mode is a thing, and she figured he’d have his phone on it for most of the day. But then he took to Instagram, to announce he landed safely and show off his dorm and some of the sights nearby. And then a week passed, and then two, and he continued to post photos but she still hadn’t heard from him. 

Until she came home from school one day and her mother handed her a letter with French postage, her name scrawled in Hyungwon’s writing on the envelope. 

_Ma Belle_ _Wonhee_ , the letter read. 

_I hope you’re not too mad at me for not texting. I just landed in Paris_ _—_ _I'm sitting at my desk in my dorm, I haven’t even unpacked yet_ _—_ _but I’m sure this will take a while to get to Korea. The service is_ _pretty bad_ _here, so I’m not sure how much we’ll be able to talk_ _on the phone_ _, and I know you like those old romance movies, so I thought it might be neat if we write letters while I’m in France._  

_(You can tell me if you think it’s dumb. I won’t be mad.)_  

_Talk to you soon (hopefully.)_  

_Love,_ _Hyungwon_  

It was a cute idea, and Wonhee was touched he remembered her movie taste, but she didn’t want to have to wait weeks to hear from him every time. So she wrote her reply, took a picture of the back of the envelope, and posted it on Instagram, hoping to get his attention sooner than the letter would get to him. 

_Hopefully this doesn’t take two weeks to arrive_ , she captioned. 

A few minutes later she got a notification: _h.one liked your photo_. 

Seeing he was awake, Wonhee took a gamble and video-called him. The image was super pixelated—he wasn’t kidding about the connection there being terrible—but she could still make out the amused smile on his face when he answered. 

“You know, it kind of defeats the point of the letters if we video chat.” 

“Shh. I’m impatient and I miss you.” 

Hyungwon chuckled, brushing his hair back from his forehead. He had cut it shorter since she last saw him, and it looked good. “I miss you too. Sorry my letter took so long to get there.” 

“It’s alright.” Wonhee shrugged a little, hoping she looked nonchalant. “I’m just glad you didn’t forget about me.” 

“Forget you?” Hyungwon’s shock was evident, even through the pixelated image on Wonhee’s screen. “Never.” 

And he didn’t. He kept in touch, or at least tried to, but they didn’t get to talk much because of the time difference and bad signal in his dorm. They kept writing letters, but it just wasn’t the same. 

Wonhee wasn’t lovesick enough to count down the number of days until his return, but she missed him, and she looked forward to the day he would be back in Korea. 

  

It’s a couple weeks before Hyungwon’s semester is scheduled to end, and Wonhee wakes up to the sound of her phone frantically vibrating. She doesn’t have any alarms set—it's Sunday, so there’s no need for her to wake up early. She fumbles for her phone, confused, and the confusion only grows when she sees _5 missed calls from_ _Hyungwon_. 

She checks the time: 10:07 AM, which means it’s just after 2 AM in Paris. Why is Hyungwon calling her five times in a row at 2 AM? She taps the icon to call him back, trying to tame her messy bed hair using the tiny front camera display before Hyungwon’s face appears onscreen. 

His eyes are glassy, his skin flushed, and when he smiles it’s slow to form and not totally there. “Wonhee~” he answers, drawing out the _ee_ _._  

“Have you been drinking?” 

Hyungwon looks guilty, holding a wine glass up into frame. “A little. The guys in my dorm wanted to celebrate classes ending.” As if he can predict what she’s going to say next, he adds, “We’re safe, don’t worry. No one’s driving or anything.” 

“Is that why you called me five times at 2 AM? Because you’re drunk?” She sits up, holding her hand over the front of her nightgown so it doesn’t expose her flat chest when she moves. 

“I was telling the guys about you,” Hyungwon explains, and Wonhee’s pulse races. Are his roommates there? Are they going to see her in her nightgown? It took months for her to be comfortable with Hyungwon seeing her dressed like this, she definitely doesn’t want strangers to. “They didn’t believe you were real.” 

“Well, I’m real,” Wonhee says, trying to sound less anxious than she feels. “Is that all you needed? Proof of my existence?” 

Hyungwon shakes his head. “They’re back in their rooms, Wonhee. I just missed you.” 

She feels a million butterflies take flight in her stomach, desperate to be free. “You called me five times in the middle of the night because you missed me?” 

Hyungwon smiles shyly. “Is that a bad thing?” 

Wonhee bites her lip. “No. I miss you too.” 

He takes a sip of whatever’s in his wine glass. “I hate how shitty the Wi-Fi here is. We don’t get to talk because the connection always fucks up.” The picture glitches out, and Wonhee thinks he’s jinxed it, but a few seconds later it fixes, and she can see him again. 

“I didn’t want to say anything,” Wonhee admits, “Because I know Paris has better opportunities for you, but letters and Instagram comments just aren’t the same as you being here.” 

“I want to bring you here,” Hyungwon says suddenly, his words a little slurred. “When we go sightseeing, all I think is _Wonhee_ _would love this_ , or _I wish_ _Wonhee_ _was here_. That’s why I post so many photos on Instagram, so you can see them.” 

“You think about me that much?” Wonhee feels her skin heating up. 

Hyungwon nods. “One day, after we both graduate, I want to come back here with you. I want to show you Paris. I want to take you to Disneyland, because I know you love the movies, and this is where your favorite one is set. I want to take you on a real date when I get home.” 

Wonhee hopes the terrible video quality will hide how tomato red her face must be. “You’re just saying that because you’re drunk.” 

“No, Wonhee. I’m saying it because I—” 

The picture freezes, and the sound goes with it. 

“Because what?” Wonhee’s heart is racing. Don’t give out now, please. “Hyungwon? Because you what?” 

_Call failed_. 

She hits the button to call back, then hits it again, but it won’t go through. She groans in frustration, feeling the urge to throw her phone at the wall, but she doesn’t have the money for a new one. Instead, she goes to Hyungwon’s DMs, fingers trembling as she types. 

_What were you going to say? The call dropped._  

She chews at her lip, staring transfixed at the screen as the words _h.one is typing_ pop up. They seem to stay there an eternity before they’re finally replaced with his reply. 

_i_ _dont_ _rnemver_  

She’d find the drunk typo amusing in other circumstances, but now she just wants to scream. It sounded like he was spilling his heart, what does he mean he doesn’t remember? 

The bubble pops up that he’s typing again, and then he says: 

_o_ _wxit_  

_ye I do_  

_i_ _love u_  

It’s probably a good thing the call dropped, because Wonhee actually squeals in excitement, and she might die of embarrassment if Hyungwon witnessed that.  

_I love you too_ ❤️ 

_Get some sleep okay?_  

_I’ll see you when you’re back home._

**Author's Note:**

> Come find me on twitter @kinkyacewonho


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